GOP senator blocks National Park boss

Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Oklahoma, the man who held up Washington’s Wild Sky Wilderness, has put a “hold” on confirmation of John Jarvis as the new director of the National Park Service.

Coburn and Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, accuse the U.S. Interior Department of “slow-walking” a sweeping request for documents pertaining to the Grand Canyon National Park, according to the on-line publication Politico.

“We will not release Jarvis until we get legitimate answers to the questions,” said Coburn. He acknowledged that Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, a former Senate colleague, has supplied much of the information.

Jarvis, a biologist, is an unlikely target for the political right. He is a park professional with a long resume.

Since 2002, Jarvis as served as Region West director of the National Park Srevice, supervising 54 park system units in Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Hawaii and the Pacific Islands. He oversees a $350 million budget.

Jarvis was superintendent at Mt. Rainier National Park before his current posting. He has also served as superintendent of the vast Wrangell-St. Elias National Park in Alaska, America’s largest national park.

Earlier in his career, Jarvis worked as director of cultural resources at the North Cascades National Park.

Coburn is an outspoken opponent of conservation and preservation legislation.

Last year, he held up Senate approval of the Wild Sky Wilderness Area. Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., bundled Wild Sky together with other proposals, and persuaded the Senate to end Coburn’s filibuster.

Coburn was a lead opponent when Congress passed the Omnibus American Wilderness Act earlier this year.

The Oklahoma senator, a physician, is also known as an outspoken pro-life advocate who once suggested the death penalty for abortion providers.

The request for Grand Canyon documents has never been explained. Or as Politico put it Wednesday, “Left unanswered by Coburn and Bishop, what are they looking for, and why?